5 Ways to Keep Employees Productive this Christmas

As the holiday season draws near, the festive atmosphere ushers in a sense of joy, cheer, and excitement. At the same time, productivity levels at businesses threaten to wane. For most small businesses, the holiday season is also the most important part of the year as opportunities abound to multiply sales and revenues.

Amidst all the excitement, stress and distraction, how do you keep your employees engaged?

Here are five ways to keep your employees productive this Christmas.

1.     Set your team a challenging goal

With family and holiday shopping taking precedence, it’s easy for employees to get distracted and lose interest. To keep your employees engaged, plan a big project or a challenging target that requires the participation and contribution of all team members.

Lay out clear expectations, goals and priorities for each team member, and follow up with them occasionally to see if they need any assistance, guidance or access to resources.

Announce a collaborative reward for the entire team, such as a company-sponsored dinner or Christmas party. By setting stiff but achievable end-of-year targets followed by a worthwhile reward, you will ensure that each member of your team strives hard and encourages others to reach the team’s collective goals.

2.     Food and Festive Charm

According to a recent Seamless survey, over 60 percent of employees surveyed felt more valued and productive when their company provided them food. For the days leading up to Christmas, lay out a generous spread of goodies in your office lounge during mealtimes. Make sure you cater to any special dietary requirements. Gestures such as these are sure to create positive mindsets and goodwill among your employees leading to greater productivity.

Creating a joyful atmosphere in the office is equally important. You’ll be surprised at how much positive energy you can generate when you add a bit of Christmas decoration. Use some of these decorating ideas to create a festive charm in your office.

3.     Minimize distractions

While it’s okay for your team to engage in a bit of office banter and festive fun, make sure they aren’t distracted when they’re working. It’s easy for employees to get sidetracked by internet activities such as e-greetings, social media and live chats.

To prevent such occurrences and to ensure that productivity is not negatively affected, you can use a web filtering software to control employee internet access. CurrentWare, an employee monitoring software, offers a BrowseControl feature that allows you to block websites and control internet access for each member of your team. This allows your employees to stay focused on their tasks without compromising on the cheer of the holiday season.

4.     Reward success

The holiday season is a great time to reflect on the year’s successes and celebrate individual and team achievements. Handwritten notes, three-cheers, or a rewards and recognition scheme tied to your business goals are all great ways to thank your employees for a job well done. It’s also important to be fair when you decide on the rewards for individual team members.

If you’re using CurrentWare’s BrowseReporter, a feature allows you to view, assess, and select your most diligent and dedicated workers. Rewards based on detailed recorded reports prevent ambiguity and negate any feelings of bias or unfairness. Such reports are particularly useful if you are looking to provide a Christmas bonus to your employees based on their work performance.

5.     Flexible timings

Everybody needs to shop for presents and spend more time with friends and family during the holiday season. Being trapped in their daily routine is the last thing employees want. To strike a balance between work and the season’s obligations, set down certain minimum hours that every employee must work during the week. When they have flexible work timings, employees can more effectively plan their working hours around family activities and Christmas shopping. As such, they end up being less pressured and stressed out at work, and hence more productive.

You can even offer your employees an option to telecommute. In case you need to track employee internet usage and ensure that they’re billing time correctly, you can use CurrentWare’s BrowseReporter tool to monitor employees’ computer remotely. That way, they get to spend more time with their family while still being productive.

The holiday season is that time of the year when employee productivity tends to be at its lowest. If you want to ensure that your business has a solid finish to the year, keep your employees motivated throughout the season with challenging goals, free food, flexible work timings, and hard-earned rewards.